


so easy when the whole world fits inside of your arms

by minimitchell



Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Domestic Fluff, Families of Choice, Family Feels, Father's Day, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 11:40:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24969109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minimitchell/pseuds/minimitchell
Summary: Ben leans forward to grab the card, inspecting the front with a bright smile on his face. It says HAPPY FATHER’S DAY – I LOVE YOU SOOOO MUCH in Lexi’s scriggly handwriting, a big, pink heart drawn under the letters and little flowers all around the text. The O's have little faces and hearts in them and Ben really appreciates the artistic talent his daughter has inherited from somewhere that is definitely not her parents.or, a father's day fic for lexi's (and my) favorite dads
Relationships: Ben Mitchell & Lexi Pearce, Callum "Halfway" Highway & Lexi Pearce, Callum "Halfway" Highway/Ben Mitchell, Jay Brown & Lexi Pearce
Comments: 12
Kudos: 71





	so easy when the whole world fits inside of your arms

**Author's Note:**

> so i originally planned to post a fic for pride this weekend, but i didn't get it done in time because of StressTM. so have a fic instead that was inspired by the lack of father's day fics lol.  
> also in this timeline ben's already had his operation and the implant.  
> as always, thanks for reading. <3

Ben wakes up to a soft pressure on his chest. It goes away for a second then comes back again and again and again. He cracks one eye open, hoping to take care of whatever woke him up and go back to sleep again. He can still feel the weight of Callum’s arm on his stomach, his boyfriend apparently not bothered at all by whatever it is that's disrupting his sleep.  
  
The harsh light of the morning sun is blocked by blonde hair and soft curls in front of him and Ben opens both of his eyes when he recognizes the small shape of his daughter lying halfway across his chest on the bed, elbows on his pecs and her head in her hands. He has half a mind to be thankful for them thinking ahead last night and putting on their sleeping clothes again after their late-night _activities_ , not wanting to risk scarring Lexi if a situation like today would ever arise.  
  
She’s blurry without his glasses, but Ben can just about make out that she’s holding out both of her hands to him, his glasses in one and -he guesses- his hearing aid in the other. He takes his glasses first, sliding them onto his nose and watching the world in front of him become less fuzzy and much clearer. Lexi’s smiling brightly at him and he smiles back at her automatically, the sunshine radiating off her in the same way it does when Callum is smiling at him, warming every little crevice of him to the core.  
  
‘I have a surprise for you.’, Lexi signs to him, bouncing up and down on the bed a little in eager anticipation.  
  
Ben takes the hearing aid out of her other hand and installs it behind his ear. It’s taken him a while to get the hang of it without looking in the mirror, now only needing a little while to get used to all the sounds around him coming back alive again. He can now hear Callum’s light snores next to him, still blissfully unaware of the commotion happening in their bed at this moment.  
  
“Happy Father’s Day, daddy.”, Lexi whispers.  
  
She climbs further up the bed to sling her arms around his neck and Ben can only press a kiss into her hair, still overwhelmed at all the love this little girl has for him. That he gets to see and experience it every day now. He’s still trying to make up for all the lost time between them, definitely not feeling worthy of her complete admiration for him, especially on days like these.  
  
“Thank you, princess.”  
  
“I made breakfast for all of you. Mummy helped a bit, but I did most of it myself and I made you a card.”  
  
“That’s lovely, Lex. I’ll be right down.”  
  
He’s running his hand through her hair, feeling so overcome with love and adoration for this little person that means so unbelievably much to him now. A second hand joins from beside him, finding its place in rubbing small circles onto his daughter’s back, and Ben looks to the side to see Callum now awake and smiling softly at Lexi. It makes his throat clog up with emotions that feel _too_ big, even considering everything the two of them had been through up until this point. Emotions he doesn’t dare voice, too scared of laying himself and all his careful wishes bare.  
  
All because there’s zero apprehension from Callum when it comes to Lexi, never has been. He’s never tiptoed around her or given her less than his full attention or made her feel less important to him than Ben is. Sure, he had been a little hesitant the first time he had interacted with Lexi as Callum, who was dating her dad and not just Callum, who was also living on the square. But that hesitancy had dissipated so quickly and Ben had been able to watch their relationship blossom into something that sends visions of the future to his head, that Ben isn’t ready to process yet. Let alone voice.  
  
“Mummy and Jay are already downstairs so hurry up, please.”  
  
Ben watches as she climbs down from the bed and runs back out of their bedroom, not being able to suppress his chuckle at her being demanding even if she’s supposed to be nice to him today. Callum’s hand finds its way to his chest, subconsciously resting directly over his heart. Ben turns his head toward him and places a kiss onto his forehead, watching as a content little smile makes its way onto his boyfriend’s face.  
  
“Morning.”  
  
“Morning to you, too.”  
  
They take the time to trade a few unhurried kisses with each other, morning breath be damned, not making any moves to emerge from their place under the soft duvet and join the outside world yet. They all have plans to go to the park later, a casual, nice picnic obviously the best way to spend Father’s Day. Ben is meeting Phil in the Vic sometime around afternoon, while Callum’s going to see Mick and afterwards, they will all meet back home to watch a movie together in the evening. Although Ben doesn’t really care what they’re doing today, he just wants to be surrounded by all his favorite people.  
  
“Are you coming, you slowpokes?”, Lexi’s voice travels loud and clear from downstairs all the way to their bedroom.  
  
Ben rolls his eyes in fake exasperation, but they both have to share a laugh, not really surprised by Lexi shouting at them to hurry up. They get up and quickly brush their teeth, changing into something a bit more appropriate for a family breakfast than boxers.  
  
When they both finally get downstairs and enter the kitchen, they are met with every inch of the kitchen table decked out in food. A stack of pancakes in the middle, bread rolls and an assortment of juices and coffee lined up at the sides. There’s even a little vase with flowers at the back, and although they’re clearly picked from someone else’s garden, Ben really appreciates the sentiment. Jay and Lola are already seated, Lexi jumping up and down next to them between the two remaining empty chairs.  
  
“Nice of you two to finally join us.”, Jay quips, already taking sips from a fresh coffee mug.  
  
Ben swipes for him halfheartedly and with a smile on his face; it’s not his fault that it’s hard for him to tear himself away from Callum in a timely manner.  
  
Lexi tells them to sit down and rushes around them to get them whatever they want to drink, coffee being poured expertly into both of their favorite mugs. It’s incredibly endearing and she obviously impresses all the adults and not just Ben at the table, if their faces are anything to go by. _God_ , Ben just knows she’s going to be spoiled rotten for this by him for the foreseeable future. He’s not able to say no to her on a good day, but fueled by such an amazing display of gratitude and sweetness, it’s going to be impossible for him to deny her anything.  
  
“Here’s your card. I hope you like it.”  
  
She places a folded up, white piece of paper in the middle of the table before sitting down next to Lola, placing her hands in front of her mouth in anxious anticipation. Ben doesn’t know why she’s even worried about it; like he could ever not love anything his little girl makes for him, his desk at the car lot a good example of this, being decked out in her drawings as it is.  
  
Ben leans forward to grab the card, inspecting the front with a bright smile on his face. It says _HAPPY FATHER’S DAY – I LOVE YOU SOOOO MUCH_ in Lexi’s scriggly handwriting, a big, pink heart drawn under the letters and little flowers all around the text. The O's have little faces and hearts in them and Ben really appreciates the artistic talent his daughter has inherited from somewhere that is definitely not her parents.  
  
When he opens the card, he has to let out a little gasp at the picture she’s drawn over the two sides in the middle. He understands now why their chairs are arranged the way they are – his, Jay’s and Callum’s so close together in contrast to the other two – and why she placed the card in the middle of the table and not in his hands specifically. There’s a little girl in the center of the picture, wearing a pink dress and long blonde hair that is obviously supposed to represent Lexi and behind her are three men, one a little taller than the other two, all holding hands with little hearts drawn between them.  
  
He hears Jay suck in a breath beside him as he too examines the picture, no doubt focusing on the figure on the left with the bright ginger hair penciled in. When Ben sneaks a look at him, there are tears in his eyes and Ben just _knows_ how much this means to Jay, how much he deserves this, definitely more so than Ben himself if he’s being honest. Jay has been there for Lexi when Ben hasn’t and for her to view him as someone, who’s important enough to be drawn onto a Father’s Day card is a tremendously big thing.  
  
That’s why he can’t even imagine what Callum must feel right now as someone so new to this family unit, but obviously still significant enough to see himself in art form, drawn next to the two other figures, all tall brown hair and bright blue eyes. Ben can see in his peripheral vision that he’s staring at the picture open-mouthed, obviously still trying to process what it means. He lays a hand on Callum’s leg, squeezing subtly as a way to ask if he’s alright. Maybe this is too much for him so early on. Maybe Callum also isn’t ready for all these emotions and possibilities concerning their future together.  
  
“Lexi.”, is all Callum says, shaken out of his reverie by Ben’s touch. It’s barely above a whisper and so laden with feelings that it sends a shiver down Ben’s spine. He’s never heard this tone of voice from Callum before, so full of awe and disbelief at the same time.  
  
Lexi shrugs from her place in her chair, apparently a little unsure because of all the silence going on since they opened her card.  
  
“I just thought that you two are my dads too in some way so I wanted to make you all a card for today.”  
  
Ben stands up at that, chair squeaking on the linoleum floor, and makes his way over to his daughter, leaving the picture behind on his untouched plate. He winds his arms around her and presses her into his chest, placing kiss upon kiss in her hair. She’s giggling at the action and when Ben meets Lola’s eyes over their daughter’s head, they’re shining with tears as well, even though she had probably seen the picture beforehand.  
  
“I love you so much. You’re the best daughter in the world, you know.”  
  
After he finally blinks back his own tears and pulls her away from his chest to press another kiss onto her cheek, he’s just in time to see Jay pulling her close and kissing her forehead, whispering a heartfelt thank you into her ear. Callum follows suit, lifting her from her chair onto his knee and letting her press her face into his neck like she always does when he’s carrying her upstairs to bed after she’s fallen asleep on the couch. When Lexi leans back and wipes a tear from the corner of Callum’s eye, Ben thinks his heart might explode completely, unprepared for the onslaught of feelings ripping his chest open at the sight of the two people he loves most in such a loving embrace.  
  
“Come on, let’s eat before these pancakes are stone cold.”, Lola says, trying to clear the emotional mood, but her voice breaks on the last word, clearly trying not to cry herself.  
  
It proves successful though and they all promptly settle back into their seats, starting to stack pancakes and bread onto their respective plates, but Ben finds Callum’s hand and holds it in a vice grip, too scared of feeling like he’s gonna float away if he doesn’t hold on to him. Callum just squeezes back, forever being able to understand and read Ben without a word. Without a manual. They share a small smile with each other. One, that makes Ben breathe a little easier, that mends the chasm that just opened in his chest, that stitches him back together like Callum’s done every day for the past months and like he's done to Callum all of last year.  
  
He doesn’t let go off Ben’s hand even when it makes eating his breakfast a little more difficult than usually.   
  
After breakfast, Ben will put that card up on the fridge – picture side out – so that everyone, who enters their home can see it. Can witness their dysfunctional, unusual, _beautiful_ family, with a little girl, who is loved beyond words, and a mum and _three_ dads, who will give her the world and everything more.  
  
Maybe he will frame it instead.


End file.
